Scramasax
The Scramasax, in the form of the "Soul Kiss" weapon, is the first Dagger blade to be acquired and the eighth guaranteed blade available without drops (after Broad Sword and before Langdebeve). It is, however, the second Tier of Dagger after Battle Knife. It is recommended to use Scramasax for its Phantom bonus only on bosses that prove to be too difficult to hit because of the enemy's defense stat. However, dagger use requires the player to continually move with their target and time their attacks well, much more so than other weapons. All Daggers have Range 1; the shortest range even among the shorter-range Small weapons; the shortest range of all weapons. In Vagrant Story, almost all attackers either hit and run (or hit and fly away such as Imps and Gremlins), or in the case of bosses, are extremely large. Daggers may even be unable to hit the heads of Golems, or other body parts of Dragons. In the mid to late game, Daggers are widely available in , with its Phantom bonus, especially in Undercity East and beyond. They share Hilts with Swords, so these should not be ignored. However, it is likely that the blades themselves fit more in the category of a late game collection task to while away the hours than a utilitarian acquisition of power with which to speed through the game. The Scramasax blade itself is acquired in the The Bandit's Hideout in the Catacombs; like most of the other guaranteed Starting Weapons, it comes from a chest. It is the reward for defeating a Hellhound, Bat and Ghost. Scramasax, like five of the twelve Daggers, is Piercing Type. Rapier should be used to damage enemies that are weak to Pierce; the Phantom bonus is too valuable. At this stage of the game, Beasts like Bats, Wolves, and Hellhounds are weak to Pierce, and a few Undead, but nothing that cannot be finished off easily with other weapons. Phantoms are another matter; they are always harder to hit throughout the game, and Soul Kiss' bonus will be very usefully employed in the early game at the very least. The Swept Hilt it comes with is Piercing type and is therefore perfect for the blade itself. Scramasax is one of only four of the Starting Weapons capable of a Progression, a superior combination with another of its same Design, Dagger; the other three being Rapier, Glaive and Broad Sword. The rest only devolve higher-Tier weapons; Spear is capable of passing on its Class and Affinity bonuses to a Scorpion, but the result remains a Scorpion. The difficulty of incorporating Soul Kiss into a Dagger Progression is twofold; # It cannot be done until late in the game, at Metal Works in Town Center East, # Despite having three opportunities to progress: Battle Knife, Dirk, or Throwing Knife there are no versions of these available as drops or chest loot. One could be devolved from higher Tiers, or the simplest way might just be to get a second Soul Kiss in a New Game Plus, combine it with one of the innumerable Hatchets, and combine the resulting Throwing Knife with the other Scramasax for a Kudi. Soul Kiss has a blade, as only the Wizard Staff in the Starting Weapons. Silver is naturally high in and Class bonuses, and high in Affinity. In the first playthrough, Silver can only be worked with other Silver or Damascus blades at the end of the midgame, in the Metal Works workshop in Town Center South. Unlike most of the other Starting Weapons, Scramasax is capable of a Progression, a superior combinations with another Dagger, where all of the others except Rapier and Broad Sword only devolve higher-Tier weapons. It and other early daggers share the ability to combine with blades two Tiers apart, instead of only consecutive Tiers. It combines with Dirk to make Throwing Knife and with Throwing Knife or Kudi to make a Kudi. With so few weapons to choose from at the start of the game, it is possible that this blade will acquire a great deal of Class bonuses, so it is worthwhile searching for a good combine target. The problem is that there is only one such Silver blade available, the Kudi, and is not available until the end of the First Iron Maiden. There can be found the Chest Key to open a chest in the Hidden Resources room of the Second Abandoned Mines. Silver Hatchets can be found in Undercity East; add one to the Kudi to make a Kris, one to the Kris to make a Khukuri, and one to the Khukuri to make a Baselard. Silver Baselards drop elsewhere in Undercity East; two make a Stiletto, and two Stilettos make the ultimate, 12th-Tier Dagger, Jamadhar. On the bright side, the Soul Kiss and other Silver weapons can be integrated into combinations with Damascus in the first playthrough, before New Game Plus and access to Godhands workshop. Furthermore, because Daggers are the end of the Design Prevalence chain, their products will take on Damascus material in any combinations with other Designs of weapons. As can be seen in the Best Combinations article, the Soul Kiss, in the form of a Silver Khukuri, can be incorporated into a War Maul or Halberd. In the form of a Silver Baselard, it can become a Damascus Runeblade. In the form of a Silver Jamadhar, it can become a Damascus Destroyer. In various forms of Silver dagger, it can even become part of the formation of the sought-after Damascus Brandestoc Class, Affinity, Type, Damage Points and Phantom Points are all divided by four hundred and then multiplied by total Strength to determine Damage (Crossbow Phantom Points are divided by 800). For example, Swept Hilt has two Edged and four Piercing (there is no such thing as a Blunt-Type Dagger, Sword, or Great Sword, so this stat on Hilts can be ignored entirely), for up to 1% times the value of Strength, compared with 3.75% for Minor Elemental gems such as Sylphid Topaz, and the same for Minor Nemesis gems such as Iocus. Scramasax' Damage Points are 116 at maximum, which would add 29% to Strength. Its Phantom Points are 95 at maximum, adding 23.75% to Strength. See also * Dagger * Dagger Combinations Category:Dagger Category:Short Weapons Category:Starting Weapons